THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 19, 1995 TAG: 9503160191
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY JOHN HARPER, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 234 lines
AS GOLFERS FLOCK to northeastern North Carolina in search of beaches, birdies and bogies, the Outer Banks is coming up to par with other East Coast resort communities.
Outer Banks residents and visitors have enjoyed a quiet boom in golfing challenges in recent years, now finding courses only a short drive or a long iron away.
Dare County now boasts championship 18-hole courses in Nags Head, Southern Shores and Kitty Hawk, as well as a nine-hole executive course at Hatteras.
The mainland of Currituck County has an 18-hole course, with two others scheduled to open this summer. And the Currituck Club on the northern Outer Banks will open in the summer of 1996.
Area golf professionals and managers agree that the growth of golf on the Outer Banks is good. Pointe Golf Club general manager Keith Hall expressed it best.
``This really creates a golf course atmosphere,'' Hall said. ``It promotes golf and increases the demand.''
Here, then, is a tour of area golf courses, guided by the pros themselves.
SEA SCAPE in Kitty Hawk is the Outer Banks' oldest golf course. Built in 1965, it was designed by professional golfer Art Wall. The original design is virtually intact, save for a par 4 lengthened to a par 5 to prevent errant drives from hitting the houses that line the fairway.
Sea Scape is a tight, 6,200-yard par 72 layout winding through Kitty Hawk Woods. The course is surrounded by water and sea oats. Many of the tee boxes offer a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean.
This course, like the others on the Outer Banks, is relatively short and is designed for golfers of all levels. General manager Bob Sullivan says the key is staying straight.
``This course can be tough,'' Sullivan says. ``The wind is always a factor, but keep the ball in the fairway and it's enjoyable.''
Sullivan's son, Bryan, is Sea Scape's head professional. Bryan was a collegiate All-American at the University of North Carolina and was a member of three ACC championship golf teams. His professional experience includes play on the Canadian PGA Tour, the Nike Tour and PGA Tour.
Sea Scape's signature hole is the 420-yard, par 4 11th. The green is elevated 25 feet above the fairway, and if the wind is blowing more than 10 miles per hour, it can be a bear.
``We don't change much on our course,'' Bob Sullivan says. ``But we do make adjustments to make play more enjoyable.''
THE DUCK WOODS Country Club in Kitty Hawk is a semi-private course. Members have priority on tee times, but non-members can also play.
Duck Woods was designed by Ellis Maples and opened for play in July 1969. It's an out-and-back course stretching north and south, with 14 holes paralleling water.
Dean Hurst is the pro. He's been there since 1980. Hurst says the course is set up for accurate players.
``All of our holes are reachable in regulation,'' Hurst says. ``But you have to be accurate and not have a fear of water.''
Hurst says the course's most challenging hole is the par 4 16th. The hole is 440 yards but plays longer because of that sneaky old Outer Banks wind. For most players, it's a driver and a 3-wood or long iron.
Duck Woods is also a virtual wild kingdom, according to Hurst. In addition to the birdies and eagles, the course is visited by deer, raccoons, ducks, geese and rabbits.
THE NAGS HEAD Golf Links is a true Scottish links style course created through the wind-swept environment on the Roanoke Sound. The Links, designed by architects Jerry Turner and Bob Moore, opened in July 1987.
The architects designed the course with an emphasis on shot-making and not on length. The course, just over 6,000 yards, plays to a par of 71. But head pro Danny Agapion says it could be the longest 6,000 yards you'll ever play.
``With the wind coming off the sound,'' Agapion says, ``your ball may do different things once it's in the air.''
Five of the holes run along the sound. The challenge of the course is avoiding the water (on 13 holes), the rough, the sand dunes on every hole and the ``pot'' bunkers.
The first hole at the Links teases a golfer. It's a 275-yard par 4, easily reachable in regulation. The bigger hitters can reach the green on the drive. But don't be fooled. The next hole is a long par 5 that parallels U.S. 158 and has lots of rough and a bit of water.
The Links' finishing hole is probably the greatest test on the golf course. Golf Digest called it ``one of the most beautiful holes on the East Coast.''
Agapion says a good drive will make the second shot easier, but then there's the rest of the yardage.
``If you can't get over the bottleneck on your second shot,'' Agapion says, ``play the hole as a par 6.''
The company that operates the Nags Head Golf Links is also building the Currituck Club course set to open in 1996.
HATTERAS ISLAND has its own course: The Ocean Edge Golf Course, opened in August 1991.
David Parker is the course's general manager and architect. The Ocean Edge is a nine-hole ``executive,'' or short, course, measuring 1,800 yards. The course features six par 3's and three par 4's. Parker, a onetime turf farmer, keeps the greens and fairways in pristine shape.
He says the trick of playing the course is staying in the fairway.
``You can play out of the rough,'' Parker says, ``but you may have to contend with sea oats.''
The course's signature hole is the par 3 third. It plays from 200 to 230 yards, depending on the wind. And Parker says the prevailing wind is almost always in your face.
The Ocean Edge is known as the ``hole-in-one course.'' Parker says 54 holes-in-one have been recorded.
GOOSE CREEK Golf and Country Club is the Outer Banks' newest course. The rolling 6,200-yard layout in Grandy plays to a par of 72.
Jerry Turner designed the course that opened with nine holes in 1993. The back nine opened in October 1994. Head pro Wendell Smith, who joined Goose Creek last year, says the course is a test for all levels of players.
``It's a conventional course,'' Smith says. ``You have to stay straight.''
Smith describes Goose Creek as a tight course. Five holes have water in play, and depending on the wind direction, an easy hole can become a difficult one.
The toughest hole on the course is the par 3 13th. The ball must carry 165 yards to reach the green.
In the summer, with a southwest wind, a five iron will get you there. But with a northeast winter wind in your face, that five iron may leave your shot 30 yards short.
Smith says the course was designed for enjoyment.
``You don't have to spend the whole day beating your ball out of 4-inch rough,'' he said.
TWO COURSES in Currituck County are slated to open soon. The Holly Ridge Golf Course in Harbinger opens Memorial Day, and The Pointe Golf Club in Powells Point opens July 1.
The Holly Ridge course is another nine-hole executive layout. It measures 1,800 yards and plays to a par of 32. The course features five par 3's, three par 4's and one par 5.
Norman and Jeff Newbern designed and built the course, which features Bermuda greens and fairways.
Norman Newbern calls the par 4 fourth the course's signature hole. The hole plays 330 yards with water in the middle of the fairway.
About 75 per cent of Holly Ridge is in the woods. The fairways are wide, but what about the rough?
``It's rough rough,'' Newbern says.
RUSSELL BREEDEN is the designer of the Pointe Golf Club in Powells Point. He's the same man who designed Portsmouth's Sleepy Hole. And according to general manager Keith Hall, Breeden is a hands-on designer.
``He really likes to walk the course as he designs it,'' Hall says. ``He shaped all the greens himself.''
The Pointe is a links-style, 18-hole layout. It's short, 6,000 yards, and plays to a par of 71. Water is a factor on seven holes. Forty-six bunkers decorate the course.
Hall says the course is set up to make getting to the green easy. But once you're on the green, the challenge begins.
``Most of the greens have tiers,'' Hall says. ``That's going to mean more breaks to the putts.''
The eighth hole is a test. It's a short par 5, with water on the right and a two-tier green.
``Our course is going to require some delicate shots,'' Hall says. ``And that hole demands delicate putts and maybe a delicate chip shot.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by DREW C. WILSON
Color on the cover
The water view can cause a golfer's attention to stray on the 9th
green at Nags Head Golf Links, a Scottish style course, located on
Roanoke Sound.
The body language says it all as Shirley Wisdom, 59, misses the putt
on the 4th green while playing with her husband Derek, 60, at Sea
Scape Golf Resort in Kitty Hawk.
Golfers finish a round on the green of the 18th hole at Duck Woods
Country Club, the oldest course on the Outer Banks.
Prospective buyers look over the course plan for The Currituck Club
during a party celebrating the unveiling of the housing and golfing
development's plans.
LEARNING THE GAME
The Outer Banks Golf Academy will open in May to provide
professional instruction for all levels of golfers.
Sea Scape's head professional, Bryan Sullivan, and assistant golf
pro, Dan O'Boyle, are the instructors.
The clinic will operate at two Kitty Hawk locations: Sea Scape
Golf Links and The Promenade. The academy offers one-, two- and
three-day clinics.
All clinics will be taught by a PGA-affiliated professional.
For information, call 261-2158.
THE COURSES
Prices vary with the season:
Duck Woods Country Club
Southern Shores
Greens fees and cart, $52
Reserved tee times and proper golf attire required
261-2609
Sea Scape Golf Resort
Kitty Hawk
Greens fees and cart, $35
Tee times and proper golf attire required
261-2158
Nags Head Golf Links
Nags Head
Greens fees and cart, $50
441-8073, (800) 851-9404
Ocean Edge Golf
Frisco
Greens fees and cart, $25 for nine holes, $35 for 18 holes
995-4100
Goose Creek Golf and Country Club
Grandy
Greens fees and cart, $25 for nine holes, $35 for 18 holes
453-4008, (800) 443-4008
The Pointe Golf Club
Powells Point
Opens July 1
No fees established
491-8561
Holly Ridge Golf
Harbinger
Opens Memorial Day
No fees established
491-2893
by CNB